"FOIL mechanical back-up relocking devices"

[LostGunner]

I searched google and I searched lockpicking101.com with no good answers to what "FOIL mechanical back-up relocking devices" means. At some point I would like to purchase a nice gun safe (many moons from now when I actually have a decent income) and one of the features some safes tout is the FOIL mechanical relocking devices.

So as I was writing this message I searched ftknox.com and found part of an answer:

Relockers: FOIL, Fail-safe Operational Internal ReLocker, insures total security. Even if the tumbler is destroyed, your vault will remain tightly locked.

I presume this means that if you try to drill the lock that the act of destroying the lock effectively locks the safe. I would be interested to know if that is the traditional "piece of glass in the door" that all the movies talk about... or perhaps I misunderstood?

Additionally - suppose someone did (intentionally or unintentionally) activate this mechanism and the safe automatically relocks... That's great because the person trying to break in is locked out right? So what happens to the stuff inside when the person who owns the safe wants to get it out? Presumably there is some technique for accomplishing opening the safe without destroying the contents, or else why would people use the safe at all? And if there is such a way why doesn't the person trying to get in in the first place use it? Perhaps simply time considerations? Perhaps that is why the safe locks are rated 2, 2M and 1 - but as I understand it those ratings only apply to the lock, not the safe...?

To the mods: I realize this topic is slightly off of the "Locks" category but I didn't know where else to post, and I hope you will grant some leeway in subject discussion...? Thanks.

[Shrub]

You arent going to get any safe opening discussion i the public thread sbut yes it is possable and thats why there are safe engineers and its one of those you would have to call out to get it open, the general criminal isnt going to know how to open them not alone have the tools nor time to do it.

The sheet of glass in a safe is very much true and yes the foil is just another version of it.

[eric343]

Yes, relockers exist. The idea is that they will block the boltwork if forcible entry of the safe is attempted, therefore requiring the burglar to attack all the bolts or the boltwork instead of one small weak point capable of retracting the bolts. Some older safes also linked canisters of tear gas, smoke, or dye packs to the relockers, thereby preventing the burglars from continuing their operations or removing any usable money from the safe.

If you want a safe with a glass relocker, you'll want to buy UL-rated TL-15 or better.

Yes, they can be bypassed by a safe technician or even by a particularly good safecracker. Burglars don't do it because it takes too long, whereas the safe tech does not have to worry about the police coming.

No safe or vault is impregnable, otherwise your valuables would be gone forever if there was a mechanical failure. The idea is to make opening the safe so time-consuming that the police will get there before the burglars get it open. On top of that, the techniques and tools needed to open the safe are esoteric and fundamentally difficult enough that few burglars can or will bother to acquire them. From the burglar's point of view, it's better business to hold a gun to the person with the combination.

[LostGunner]

Makes sense. Thanks for the answer!

[raimundo]

its a variation on the old 'dinamite bolt', which was a strong bolt cocked over a strike hole with a very heavy spring, that was held back by a toggle on the back of the door caseing, if someone tried to drive the dial shaft in, they forced it into the door casing, and when this moved back, the dinamite bolt triggered. anything that forced the back side of the door back would release the dinamite bolt. don't exactly know how the glass one is set up, but glass under pressure could eventually fracture, so probably they aren't using the heavy coil spring that was part of the dinamite bolt, once the bolt shot into the strike, perhaps an angle grinder right into the door gap would be effective.